^ Yeah Big L and Big Pun would be the obvious ones. Pun was probably one of the all time most gifted rhymers in the way he was able to deliver complex verses at a high speed. As for L his use of local slang and unorthodox rhyming schemes were what made him such a unique entity. Would have been interesting to see what they two would have done next, I know Pun was trying to lose weight at the time of his death; he did a lot of stuff with Fat Joe and the like so he may have had a crack at the mainstream. Alternately he may have opted to remain somewhat underground as he was a prominent figure in the battle scene of South New York. Big L was also a notorious rap battler but the fact L had just signed with Rockafella leads me to beleive he probably would have went on to garner considerable media attention and be held in the same regard as Jigga and Nas in the eyes of the casual follower as well as increasing his popularity tenfold.
Other than them two, I never really hear much about Mac Dre. Although he's released a ton of music and was credited with being the innovator of some Bay Area movement, he's rarely discussed. I've never seen him as one of the greats, but I guess I can dig his style, it's by in large more party orientated (or at least what I've heard is)
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